Abstract
In the present paper, it is intended to elucidate the phylogeny of the tribe Linnaeeae. For this purpose are studied their inflorescences, corollas and corolla glands, anthers, pollen, ovaries, fruits and seeds, and distributions. The comparative morphology of these characters, especially of ovaries (concerning carpel, ovule, vascular strand, etc. ), seems to support an opinion that all the members of our tribe are derived from a single ancestor. As seen in table 1, however, the genus Symphoricarpos differs distinctly from the other members of the tribe Linnaeeae and seems to be much primitive than the other members of this tribe. Therefore, the writer separates this genus from the other members taxonomically in the rank of subtribe. The relationship with the other genera of Linnaeinae is not clearly known, because each character suggests its own course of evolutionary trend and there is no such final characteristics as to indicate the affinity among them. Table 1. Differences between Symphoricarpos and other genera. [table] According to the features found in the corolla and its glands as shown in table 2, the genus Abelia may better be divided into two groups, the sections Vesalea and Abelia. The former is considered to be more primitive than the latter. In the section Abelia, we can distinguish three series, Sers. Aberia, Uniflorae and Serratae. Among them the series Uniflorae and Serratae seem to be derived along different courses from an ancestor belonging to the series Abelia. This speculation is supported by the evolutionary trends of their inflorescences, the number of sepal and the distribution of species. Concluding the above discussion, the classification of the tribe Linnaeeae is rivised here.
